Super League Basketball is delighted to announce the winner of the Molten Most Improved Player of the Year, following a voting process involving the League’s Head Coaches, Captains and select members of the media.
The 20-year-old Great Britain junior international, Nedas Cholevinskas, has secured this season’s honour after a breakout campaign with the Surrey 89ers – his first full season in top-flight British basketball – where his performances were crucial in helping the Niners reach their first-ever final (Cup) and securing a Play-off berth.
A career-high 19 points came in a decisive Cup semi-final second leg for Cholevinskas as the youngster made five of nine attempts from beyond the perimeter on 7-11 shooting overall to help Lloyd Gardner’s side down the Leicester Riders and advance to the Final.
Following that up with 17 against Bristol the following week – again with a sublime accuracy from three-point land of 83% on six attempts – signalled that the British guard was truly finding his rhythm at the elite level, as he became a more consistent contributor for Surrey in the race for the Play-offs.
Reflecting on his win, Cholevinskas said:
“Thank you to everyone on my team for putting their trust in me and allowing me to have a great season. I’m really grateful to have found myself in a place like Surrey — it has been the right environment for me to grow.
“This season, I’ve had a lot more responsibility and had to work harder for my minutes. I’ve had some great opportunities to show I can play at this level and I feel like I made the most of them. I still have a way to go, but I’m proud of the progress and appreciate the recognition.”
Niners Head Coach Lloyd Gardner added:
“This is a great honour for Nedas. One that we as a club are delighted that he has been recognised for. Trying to establish yourself as a young player is always difficult in professional basketball and Nedas has succeeded in that this season. He has continued to improve and it’s great that the work he has been doing has led to this award.”
You can find a full voting record for the Molten Most Improved Player of the Year award below:
| Voter | Position | Club | First Choice | Second Choice | Third Choice |
| Raphell Thomas-Edwards | Captain | Bristol Flyers | Prentiss Nixon | Jalen Ray | Nedas Cholevinskas |
| Andreas Kapoulas | Coach | Bristol Flyers | Jalen Ray | Prentiss Nixon | Cam Holden |
| Fraser Malcolm | Captain | Caledonia Gladiators | Cam Holden | Ciaran Sandy | Nedas Cholevinskas |
| Jonny Bunyan | Coach | Caledonia Gladiators | Nedas Cholevinskas | Marcus Delpeche | Duke Shelton |
| Skyler White | Captain | Cheshire Phoenix | Duke Shelton | Nedas Cholevinskas | Pasquale Landolfi |
| Ben Thomas | Coach | Cheshire Phoenix | Prentiss Nixon | Blake Bowman | Nedas Cholevinskas |
| Conner Washington | Captain | Leicester Riders | Josh Ward-Hibbert | Kyle Carey | Nedas Cholevinskas |
| Rob Paternostro | Coach | Leicester Riders | Prentiss Nixon | Cam Gooden | Marcus Delpeche |
| Ovie Soko | Captain | London Lions | Jamell Anderson | Larry Austin Jr | Skyler White |
| Petar Bozic | Coach | London Lions | Cam Holden | Nedas Cholevinskas | Evan Walshe |
| Donovan Mitchell | Captain | Manchester Basketball | Zach Jackson | Jalen Ray | Evan Walshe |
| Herman Mandole | Coach | Manchester Basketball | RJ Eytle-Rock | Nedas Cholevinskas | Theo Hughes* |
| Darius Defoe | Captain | Newcastle Eagles | Evan Walshe | Ciaran Sandy | Duke Shelton |
| Marc Steutel | Coach | Newcastle Eagles | Nedas Cholevinskas | Ciaran Sandy | Prentiss Nixon |
| Rodney Glasgow Jr | Captain | Sheffield Sharks | Cam Gooden | Keddy Johnson | Cam Holden |
| Atiba Lyons | Coach | Sheffield Sharks | Nedas Cholevinskas | Cam Holden | Jalen Ray |
| Tayo Ogedengbe | Captain | Surrey 89ers | Keddy Johnson | Matt Goodwin | Duke Shelton |
| Lloyd Gardner | Coach | Surrey 89ers | Prentiss Nixon | Cam Holden | Josh Ward-Hibbert |
| Anthony Rowe | Media | Not applicable | Prentiss Nixon | Nedas Cholevinskas | RJ Eytle-Rock |
| Dan Routledge | Media | Not applicable | Nedas Cholevinskas | Cam Holden | Duke Shelton |
| Drew Lasker | Media | Not applicable | Cam Holden | Cam Gooden | Prentiss Nixon |
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